


12 Days of Ficmas

by orphan_account



Category: DCU - Comicverse, Runaways (Comics), Young Justice (Cartoon)
Genre: 12 Days of Ficmas, F/F, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-12-02
Updated: 2012-12-17
Packaged: 2017-11-20 01:16:34
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,433
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/579699
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>12 Drabbles written for the holidays. </p><p>Day One: Runaways!Zombie AU</p><p>Day Two: Roy/Jade first holiday with Lian</p><p>Day Three: Kate/Renee in their costumes</p><p>Day Four: Roy/Jade, pregnancy scare in the zombie apocalypse</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Outrun My Gun

**Author's Note:**

> For Mori, who wanted Runaways ala The Walking Dead.

Chase fucking hates zombies. He hates their rotting skin, the sound that their brittle and withered tendons make as body parts are torn from their bodies, the way they overran the earth after their parents unleashed them on the world. 

Chase fucking hates zombies, and he hates them most of all for being the cause of Gert's death. 

Gert died to save him—save all of them really—and that's what Chase hates most of fucking all. He can imagine the way that she died after he'd been forced to leave her. Over four hundred pounds would have been used to break her skull, to get to the tender brain beneath it. 

That's what those undead motherfuckers would have eaten first. Gert's brain. Her brain, one that was a thousand times smarter than his, one that was worth a hundred, thousand, million times more than his when it's alive. 

Then would have come the rest of her, stripping the skin and breaking the bones. They'd leave her ribs for last—the meat was hard to rip from the bone with their missing and flaccid teeth—and once they broke and suck the marrow from those they'd finally, at last, eat her heart and the only thing left of Gert would be debris. 

There won't even be a body left to bury, but Nico insists on there being a funeral anyway. A memorial, Karolina whispers, and no one can bring themselves to respond. 

They go behind the iconic Hollywood sign to do it, even though the place is technically still heavily guarded and is still private property. Gert always said that she wanted to break in like they do in the movies, and Chase had planned for that to be her birthday present when she turned eighteen. He was going to be with her, of course, but now he's the one up here without her. Life always has had a funny way of punching him in the face before it laughs at him. 

They are all dirty from the fight, and they all reek of sweat and dirt all mixed together, but its not like any of them have had time for a bath.

This, he thinks, is not how Gert's funeral (memorial service) is supposed to go. 

He's supposed to be six feet under and waiting for him to rest beside him, for one thing. And for another they aren't supposed to be so young. Their friends should have lined and grey hair and dressed like old people. They should be sitting in some funeral parlor somewhere, comforting one another, and most of all there should be a body to bury. 

Instead, there is this: They have ripped jeans and tear stains on their faces. Molly is wearing one of her stupid hats, her face buried in Victor Mancha's shirt. Xavin and Karolina are clutching at each other, and he and Nico stand as far as humanly possible. None of their faces have a single line on them except for the ones created by grief. 

This was partly their fault, he thinks. If they hadn't kissed in New York, if Gert hadn't found out. Well. Maybe then she wouldn't have given up so easily. 

Nico, of course, is the one that makes the first move. Her breath is shaky as she sucks it in, but she continues anyway. She's always been the strongest of them all. That's the reason that she's still their leader, even though there's mascara running down her face. 

“Gert was one of the smartest people that I've ever known. And one of the funniest. I'll never forget her. Not ever.”

She leaves a space behind her words, as if expecting the others to fill it, but they can't. Victor and Xavin barely knew Gert, Molly is sobbing too hard, and Karolina seems to not be able to talk at all. Nico looks at Chase, hopefully, but Chase knows that once he starts talking he'll start shouting and won't even be able to stop. He's so fucking angry. He's angry at the world, at life, at the fact that something somewhere gave him Gert only to take her away from him. 

Chase fucking hates zombies, and for the first time, he's ready to fight them one on one, solo style. He'll leave tonight when the others are sleeping. They won't understand, and he doesn't expect them to. 

“I love you,” he says to Gert, to the stars that seem to shine so brightly here, to the Hollywood sign, to the city that Gert always loved. “See you soon.”


	2. 'Tis the Season

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Day Two: Roy/Jade first holiday with Lian

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For theminuitpluie who wanted holiday fluff.

The Christmas tree in the corner had been Roy's idea. It wasn't a very large one--it came up to her knee--and on it was a candy cane, two red ball ornaments, and a star on the very top, but it was still there, being offensive. 

If you'd told Jade five years ago that she'd be sipping hot chocolate (also Roy's idea) on the couch, watching her daughter attempt to rip the wrapping paper of of her presents she would have laughed in your face. And then stabbed you. But this, this sense of normalcy, the whipped cream and all, was the reason that she had fought so hard to get Roy back. This was the life that she wanted for her daughter.

"Here, let me help you with that," Roy said eventually, as Lian's face puckered. She hadn't found the edges of the gift so the wrapping paper was still attatched firmly to the set of blocks that Jade had bought her. The lady at the store had said that blocks were the foundation to methodical thinking skills, creativity and coordination, but whatever. They were just something that she remembered Paula getting her when she was a kid. 

"See? It's easy," Roy continued, and a delighted laugh bubbled out of Lian as she ripped the paper herself. 

"Laughing at distruction." Jade smiled softly, watching her daughter and husband, their matching heads bent together. "Our little angel."

"She gets it from her mother," Roy replied, causing her foot to twitch and him to fall over like he got kicked or something. Lian laughed again, and this time a sort of warmth settled in Jade's stomach. This was her family.

This was what she had wanted.


	3. Crimes of the Heart

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for this--especially for the title.

There are nights, whenever Gotham is cold and the night sky seems particularly polluted and not even a hint of a star is to be found, that Kate wishes that she didn't do this. They moments are rare, fleeting things that she never grabs to examine, but they're still there. 

But it's on nights like this that she knows that she has to be here. That Bruce--despite the fact that he thinks that he can--couldn't take care of Gotham alone.

The perps are patrolling the area, guns in hand, but they haven't seen Kate yet. She's waiting for an opening, an opportunity, but so far the most interesting thing that they've done is light some cigarettes. This is boring, painstaking work, but Kate's never complained out loud before and she's not going to complain now. 

And then it's like they've heard her prayers. A figure melts out of the night, grabs a gun knocks out two of the guards with one blow before knocking out the one coming behind them. Without thinking, Kate jumps down into the thick of the action, and several kicks and bites and punches later they're all out one by one. 

They're both breathing heavily, Batwoman and whoever attacked the guys first. Kate's eyes take a minute to adjust underneath the flickering streetlight, but she'd remember that smooth proflie anywhere, and the shape of the hat. Her heart contracts and then flutters in a cage of its own feeling. 

"Question," Kate nods, and she hopes that her tone doesn't convey what she wants to say: I miss you.

"Batwoman," the Question nods back, and it hurts not to be able to reach out and touch her, to not be able to rip off her costume and kiss her until they're both breathing hard once again, until she can feel Renee's heart beating fast underneath the palm of her hand. 

Kate fades into the shadows before she can say, or do, anything embarrassing. They might make a perfect team, but there are some things that just can't be forgotten.


	4. Breathing's Just a Rhythm

Zatanna was starting to get on Jade's last nerve. 

"Would you fucking stop that?"

Zatanna pulled her hand, the edges of her nail now run ragged, out of her mouth and shot Jade a glare. "Well someone has to be nervous. And don't complain, you're the one who asked me if I would hold your hand, and now you've got to deal with it." 

Jade actually was nervous, even though it ran deeper than that. The terror that a pink plus sign would bring was worse than when she had almost lost her sister last month. Firstly, because Jade had no idea how to be a mother, and secondly because the world had ended and post apocalyptic movies didn't exactly cover this shit. But it's not like she was going to tell Zee that. 

So instead she just smiled, and said, "I just needed you to come with me on the run to get the pregnancy test, don't get ahead of yourself here." 

Zatanna rolled her eyes before starting to bite her nails again. The girl brought a bottle of nail polish on the run after the zombie apocolypse, but here she was ruining all of that. "How long is this supposed to take, again?" Jade asked, partly because she wanted to stop listening to Zee chew her fingers off and partly because she was sick and tired of this shit. 

"Two more minutes." She paused. "Oh God, Jade, what the hell are you going to do if it's positive? It's not like there are Planned Parenthood's open anymore."

Jade had thought about that. She'd inspected that idea carefully, from every angle, and had decided that it was too dangerous to try to abort the baby on her own. It would involve crashing into things or falling from high places, ideas that Jade didn't even want to consider. It'd almost be like suicide, in a way, and she was no quitter. Making it this far proved that. 

"Well, I guess I'll have to tell Roy," Jade contemplated aloud, ignoring the shake of the other girl's head. Zatanna had been all for telling Roy, but Jade knew her red headed archer, and she'd also known how tight the knot in his panties would get if she told him this. It was part of the reason that Zee was here instead of Artemis--Artemis might end up telling Wally, who would tell Roy, and then they'd all be up shit creek without a paddle. "I can't hide this shit forever. But it doesn't really matter what he says because I'm going to do whatever I want."

"And that is...?"

"I don't know." For a moment her uncertainty showed through, but Jade shut that door as quickly as it had opened. "Keep it, I guess. And blow up some more zombies. This kid's first words are going to be 'petroleum bomb' if I have anything to say about it. I'll carry it on my back like a koala and then it'll grow up fighting the good fight." 

Before Zatanna could respond the timer--old and rusted as it was--croaked out a ting, announcing that the stick was ready. "Let me look first," Zee said, and grabbed the cup holding Jade's pee before she could. Whatever was on the stick made Zatanna's breath intake, and Jade steeled herself for the worst. She could handle anything. 

The cup was handed over wordlessly, and Jade looked.

"I guess next raid that we go on I'll need to get Roy balloons that say 'Congratulations, you AREN'T a father, you asshole' aren't I?" 

A gray minus sign. Thank God. Jade let out a breath she hadn't been aware that she'd been holding. "I think you should go tell him now," Zatanna continued, and even though Jade knew that she was right, she still rolled her eyes. 

"Fine. But when he dies of a heart attack it's not my fault, got it?" 

Roy was fletching his arrows, and he didn't even notice when she walked into the room. Before saying anything Jade just watched him. Damn they would have made some great looking kids. Mostly from her side of the family, of course, but Roy wasn't all bad. His hair was okay. 

He looked up after she'd been standing there for a few minutes. "Come in."

"So guess what? Congratulations are in order." 

"What?" Roy looked confused, and there were feathers in his hair. 

"You aren't a father! I think that deserves a celebration. Maybe we'll steal some of Dick's coffee and take a risk or two or five." 

"Jade, what the hell are you talking about?"

"Well you see, I haven't had my period for two months. And that's scary stuff, seeing as how we've been fucking just about every night, so I had to double check. But don't worry, the only thing in your future that you have to clean up now is a cup of my pee." 

There was a pause, and Jade knew that Roy was about to blow like Mount Vesuvius. She really needed to get him a crown with sparkly letters spelling DRAMA QUEEN. 

"...You had a fucking pregnancy scare and didn't even bother to tell me? What the hell, Jade? I think I would have deserved to know! What were you planning to do, hibernate for nine months?"

"Well I was going to tell you when I knew for sure. I didn't want you to go all Teen Dad on me and split or something. And don't think that this means that you can go all Victor Virgin on me tonight either," she added once she saw the look that crossed his face. 

"I just can't believe you didn't tell anyone."

"Well, Zatanna knew. She's the one who was there when I pissed on the stick." 

"Zatanna knew before I did?" He was getting really riled up now, and there was a small part of Jade that was laughing now. "What the fuck?"

"See, I knew you were going to react like this. That's why I didn't tell you."

That left him floundering. "Well...next time you get almost pregnant I need to be the first to know."

Jade snorted at his lameness, but let it go. "Sure thing...if you're the father."


End file.
